Due to the nature of their injuries, physically disabled persons, e.g., quadriplegics and paraplegics can not exercise the nonfunctional parts of their bodies. To preserve muscle tone and strength, the large muscle groups must be worked by some external means. These muscles may be worked by a physical therapist who will move the body parts that need work. Many devices have been developed to help in this process. Often, these machines are designed to work specific areas of the body. Examples of these devices can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,802,462 to Reiss et al., 5,110,121 to Foster, 4,869,494 to Lambert, Sr., 4,976,426 to Szabo, and 4,651,719 to Funk et al. Each of these devices is designed to work a particular muscle group or groups. For example, the Reiss et al. Patent works the lower back. The Szabo Patent is designed to work the legs, arms Or both, depending on the apparatus configuration. Funk et al. is designed to work the shoulder. While these devices perform their intended functions, and because they tend to focus on rehabilitation, they are generally limited to working those specific areas of the body that they were designed.
The present invention overcomes the limitations inherent in these devices to provide a complete workout of the body for a paraplegic. The device has a seat-footrest-arm support system that is driven by a motor and an offset crank drive. This drive works to move the seat and footrest in opposite directions, i.e., When the seat is down, the footrest is up and vice versa. This allows the patient to go from a compressed state to a fully extended state during each crank cycle. By securing the patient's arms to stationary support bars, the arms are also flexed and extended during the cycle. The device has speed control to operate at reasonable speeds during the workout. A second embodiment of the invention uses VELCRO covered mitts to secure the patient's hands to a VELCRO covered leg strap. In this way, the patient's arms will follow the movement of the patient's legs.
It is an object of this invention to produce a muscle exercise apparatus for physically disabled persons that works the entire body of the patient through a single operating mechanism.
It is another object of this invention to produce a muscle exercise apparatus for physically disabled persons that is efficient and economical to build and use.
It is yet another object of this invention to produce a muscle exercise apparatus for physically disabled persons that can be speed controlled in a simple and direct manner.
It is yet another object of this invention to produce a muscle exercise apparatus for physically disabled persons that can be adapted and converted for use by non-disabled persons.
It is yet a further object of this invention to produce a muscle exercise apparatus for physically disabled persons that will provide a complete body workout through even, smooth, nonjarring motion.